Compassion

One of my favourite gospel passages is found only in John and is asteriked because scholars believe it is a later addition. It is wonderful storytelling, with Jesus casually but forcefully defending a woman who has been condemned to death by stoning for committing adultery. While he doodles in the sand he verbally challenges the self-righteousness of the those who are eager to exact punishment. When he is finished the angry mob has dispersed. Jesus courageously calls people to self-examination and compassion. The upper interpretation of this story is by Rembrandt and the lower by Max Beckmann, a twentieth century artist.

There have been two stories in the news lately about people condemned to death by stoning because of alleged extramarital affairs. A young couple was murdered in a public place by the Taliban in Afghanistan. And a woman in Iran was sentenced to this brutal form of capital punishment, only to have it changed to hanging because of international outrage and pressure. The woman has maintained that she is not guilty, but even if she was, the punishment is barbaric. It's hard to believe that stoning still exists, especially within a legal system.

To be fair, most Iranis have no stomach for this sort of brutality. The victim is buried in the earth up to her neck, then stoned to death in public. The average person in Iran has such an aversion to this cruel punishment that witnesses have to be paid to be in attendance.

We can only hope that the woman will have her death sentence commuted, and perhaps even be freed. Have you followed this story? What role to do think our government and others should take in these situations? The government of Iran isn't exactly sensitive to international pressure. Thank God we live in a more enlightened society.